The NIH provides financial support in the form of grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts to support the advancement of the NIH mission to enhance health, extend healthy lives, and reduce the burdens of illness and disability. 
In 2009, the NIH shortened the application page length from 25-pages to 13-pages. As a result, proposals must be strategically and efficiently written to focus on the importance and relevance of the proposed project while emphasizing the direct impact of outcomes. Guide to Effective Grant Writing: How to Write a Successful NIH Grant Application by Otto O. Yang is an explicit and efficient book itself with condensed chapters breaking down the multiple components of an NIH grant application. The author provides strategies on what to do and what not to do in order to communicate effectively and utilize every line of your application.
I recommend this book for anyone submitting an NIH grant as it can be used as a quick reference to strengthen a particular section, or read cover to cover to obtain a holistic understanding of NIH grants.
Chapters of the book are listed below:
- Overview: Overall Goals When Writing Grant Applications
- Organization and Use of This Guide
- Preparing to Write
- Types of NIH Grants
- Anatomy of the NIH Grant Application
- Starting to Write: Planning the Aims and Overcoming Writer’s Block
- Organization and Writing Style
- Figures and Tables
- Specific Aims
- Research Strategy: Significance
- Research Strategy: Innovation
- Research Strategy: Approach
- Bibliography and References Cited
- Use of Appendices
- Collaborators and Consultants
- Training and Career Development
- Administrative Sections and Submission Process
- Scoring Process
- Resubmitting an Application
- Non-NIH Grants
- Conclusions
As one can see, this book provides a comprehensive guide to writing NIH grants yet does so in an accessible way as most chapters are no more than 5 pages. The book also provides “common errors” among many sections of an NIH grant, providing readers with helpful non-examples.
I would also recommend this book (especially the first 3 chapters) for anyone submitting alternative federal grants (e.g., IES) for strategies on planning to write. Many of the concepts presented are applicable and beneficial to any funding agency with a reviewing process.
Learn more about NIH grants here: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/grant_basics.htm